The drive that turned the game around

The 49ers were all set up for a repeat of last week’s Arizona 21-19 loss, when the 49ers offense completely bogged down in the second half and Arizona started to hit on some big plays.

In their last six drives in the second half against the Cardinals, the 49ers had one first down and that was due to a penalty. They extended their streak to six straight second-half three-and-outs with their first two drives against the Steelers.

But then, in what turned out to be among the most crucial drives of the season, the 49ers finally caught some second-half fire. Alex Smith hung in the pocket just long enough to complete a 31-yard pass to tight end Vernon Davis. Then the 49ers got creative.

They unearthed a screen, something they haven’t used it seems since the late 70s. The play to Kendall Hunter went for 27 yards. After that, quarterback Alex Smith rolled right and then threw all the way back across the field to a wide open Davis for another 21 yards down to the Pittsburgh 1. Next play: fake handoff and a pass to Davis for a 1-yard touchdown and the first red zone score in four games.

The play and the drive broke the month-long red zone funk the team was mired in.

Later in the fourth quarter, the 49ers recovered a Ben Roethlisberger fumble and again scored in the red zone this time on a 5-yard run by Frank Gore for a touchdown. The score pumped the lead to 20-3 and the only drama left was how many times Aldon Smith was going to sack the gimpy Roethlisberger.